North Myrtle Beach refuses to answer why their top leader wore a bodycam to groundbreaking

North Myrtle Beach city leaders refuse to say why their top administrator wore a body camera to a midday groundbreaking last week.

It is unclear why he could feel unsafe in his own town at the event that included several police officers among the more than 100 who attended.

Neither Mike Mahaney, Mayor Marilyn Hatley or city spokesman Donald Graham have responded beyond a one-sentence statement sent to The Sun News on Feb. 26 — two days after the event.

Hatley said the one-line response was “self-explanatory,” and every other member of the city’s council: J.O. Baldwin III, Bubba Collins, Fred Coyne, Nicole Fontana, Trey Skidmore and Hank Thomas, did not immediately reply to emails or phone calls seeking clarity on Mike Mahaney’s decision.

Taylor Smith, an attorney for the S.C. Press Association, said it was unusual for a city leader to wear a body camera at public events and the city would “have to” give reason for why he was wearing it.

“It definitely seems to be outside the norm. I have never seen that on behalf of a non-law enforcement official,” Smith said. “If there’s any kind of record which is ever mentioning the city manager and a body cam then that is something you should definitely be able to find in the statute. They (the city) would have to trot out at least a reason that would give you a strong clue as to why he’s wearing it.”

The Sun News has requested through the state’s Freedom of Information Act all body camera footage captured by Mahaney between Jan. 1 and Feb. 24.

“We routinely enhance safety protocols according to situational circumstances,” Graham said.

How could the city manager feel unsafe at a public event in North Myrtle Beach surrounded by many other elected officials and dignitaries from Pepsi and the business community? The answer has not been provided.

Graham did not answer several other questions, including how long Mahaney has worn the camera, who’s paying for it, whether he decided to begin using it, and under what conditions it’s activated. Was the camera on Friday? The city will not provide the information to the public.

Mahaney, who’s been with the city since 2010, wore the Axon device on his shirt during a Feb. 24 ceremony welcoming Pepsi Bottling Ventures to the city’s Palmetto State Industrial Park.

“If you do a story, you can say the city manager has no comment,” Mahaney told The Sun News at the event.

Spokespeople for Horry County and Myrtle Beach said they were also unaware of an elected or appointed official using a body worn camera.

Hatley said later on Friday the equipment wasn’t being required by city leaders, and was unsure why Mahaney was using it.

“I’m sure it was for some safety measure, but I don’t know,” she said. “There’s no mandate for him to wear one.”

The event — which included members of the city and Horry County councils, state Sen. Greg Hembree and several local police officers including Chief Dana Crowell — drew a crowd of more than 100. Nobody other than Mahaney and police had visible body cameras.

The city manager has had public run-ins before

North Myrtle Beach does not live-stream its council meetings, but they are recorded for internal record keeping. The city stopped broadcasting its meetings coming out of COVID protocols.

Mahaney was cleared of criminal charges in November stemming from an alleged confrontation with a business owner that happened earlier in 2022.

The S.C. Law Enforcement Division launched an investigation following allegations that Mahaney put his hands on Glass Bottom Kayak Tours co-owner Laura Weaver during a City Hall meeting.

A SLED special agent reported to 15th Circuit Solicitor Jimmy Richardson that there was “no question” Mahaney made contact with Weaver, but the county’s top prosecutor said there wasn’t enough evidence to pursue charges.

In 2015, South Carolina became the first state to mandate its police officers wear body cameras while on the job, but lawmakers inserted language into the provision exempting footage from being released under the state’s open records act.